Haley Steger

Holiday Lesson Presidents Day

Grade: 2
Student learner objectives:
Students will learn about a holiday honoring Presidents.
Students will read a story about Presidents Day.
Students will locate the Mount Rushmore on a map.
Students will sing Do You Know the President?
Students will learn to count money.
Students will write about if they became President.
Students will locate where the presidents live during presidency.
Students will draw themselves as the president.
Students will sing George Washington.
Materials:
-Do You Know the Presidetnt? By: Kimboomu Kids Songs ISBN: 9564-DAL
-Celebrating Presidents Day: What is a President? By Kimberly Jordano and
Trisha Callella- Jones
ISBN: 978-1574715682
-George Washingtong, by Andy Glokenspiel ISBN: 2486-DAL
-History of the First Flag http://www.ushistory.org/betsy/flagtale.html
-Map of United States landmarks.
-Print out to write about If I Ran for the President of the United States
http://www.classroomjr.com/presidents-day-printable-story-starters/presidentstory-starters/

-Different types of money. (nickels, pennies, dimes, quarters, Dollar bills)

-Photographs of the Presidents and Mount Rushmore
-Paper for drawing, markers, crayons.
Curricular Connections:
Reading, Math, Geography, Language, Music, Art
Procedure:
1. Read the story Celebrating Presidents Day: What is a President? (Reading)
2. Discuss what it takes to become a president.
3. Teach the song: Do You Know the President?
4. Discuss where the president live and where there is a monument of them. (Map)
5. Students will write about if they became the president. (Writing)
6. Share a story about the first flag.
7. Introduce the man who Presidents Day is based off of.
8. Draw a picture of what you would look like as president. (Art)
9. Teach the song: George Washington
10. Make connections with our own history. (History)
11. Discuss why we use money.
12. Place money out on table and discuss how much each one is worth. Give each
student a certain amount of money and have them count it to find how much the
have.(Math)

Song Lesson: (Music)

Do You Know the President?

Do you know the president,
The president, the president?
Do you know the president
His face is on the penny!
Yes, we know the president,
The president, the president.
Yes, we know the president,
His name is Abraham Lincoln!
Do you know the president,
The president, the president?
Do you know the president
His face is on the nickel!
Yes, we know the president,
The president, the president.
Yes, we know the president,
His name is Thomas Jefferson!
Do you know the president,
The president, the president?
Do you know the president
His face is on the dime!
Yes, we know the president,
The president, the president.
Yes, we know the president,
His name is Franklin Roosevelt!
Do you know the president,
The president, the president?
Do you know the president
His face is on the quarter!
Yes, we know the president,
The president, the president.
Yes, we know the president,
His name is George Washington!
Do you know the president,
The president, the president?
Do you know the president
Yes we know the president!

Procedure for teaching the song:

1. This song tells about the presidents that are on money. Listen carefully to the
words. Why is each money piece different?
2. What does money do for us?
3. There is a phrase that repeats. Can you identify it? (Do you know the president?)
4. Please join me on these words. (Do you know the president) Sing again.
5. Why do you think we have money? (History)
6. Teach each ostinato pattern by rote.

Teaching Tips/Information:
1. Have the money sitting next to the students during the song. This allows them to
see each piece as it is being sung.
2. The term money, well, its hard to say exactly how old it is. When you research
the term you can find out that payment of some kind was used all the way back to
2200 B.C.! But the money that they used back then is not the same that we use
today. Early forms of money included shells, stones, beads and fur. The first coins
date back to 700 B.C. by the Lydians, a group of people that lived in what is now
Turkey. Coins then spread to Greece and Rome. But the worldwide use of paper
money and coins took a long time to occur. Even into the early days of the United
States, bartering or trading was still a popular way to exchange goods and
services. Before the early settlers won the war that created the United States there
was Spanish, English and French money used. But, in order to pay for the war, we
needed to develop one common currency for all the colonies. In fact, the famous
Paul Revere designed the first coins for the Continental Currency. After we won
the war and the new U.S. Constitution was ratified, Congress passed the Mint
Act on April 2, 1792. This established the coinage system of the United States,
and the dollar as the official U.S. currency. In 1793, the Philadelphia Mint
produced the first coins. The use of paper bills did not begin until the mid 1800s!
In 1861, when the Civil War began, the U.S. was in great need for money. So, on
July 17th, 1861, the Treasury Department was allowed to print and circulate paper
money, which was nicknamed, Greenbacks. And we have been using them ever
since! Sure, some of our currency has changed its appearance here and there, but
the concept is still the same.

Song Lesson (Music)

George Washington

No, he didnt chop down the cherry tree

But one of his officers, Henry Lee
Said hes first in war and first in peace

First in the hearts of his countrymen

Father of the Country
Chorus:
George, George Washington, he was the first President
George, George Washington, he lead the battle for independence
Born in 1732
Hes as true as the colors
Red, white and
his eyes were blue.
He was six feet tall
Stood for liberty and justice for all
Lead the Continental Army
Defeated the British, and we were free
Father of the Country
Chorus:
George, George Washington, he was the first President
George, George Washington, he lead the battle for independence
Born in 1732
Hes as true as the colors
Red, white and
his eyes were blue.
President of the convention that wrote our constitution
And turned into a working government

Procedure:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Ask the students to listen for a repeated phrase.

Sing the song once through. (George Washington)
Discuss why George Washington is so important to our country.
Invite the class to join in singing with the recording.
Invite students to play the melody on dulcimers. (numbers
given)
6. Add chords for more gifted students.

Common Core State Standards: CCSS

KeyIdeasandDetails

1.
2.
3.

Askandanswerquestionstodemonstrateunderstandingofatext,referringexplicitlytothetextas
thebasisfortheanswers.
Determinethemainideaofatext;recountthekeydetailsandexplainhowtheysupportthemain
idea.
Describetherelationshipbetweenaseriesofhistoricalevents,scientificideasorconcepts,orsteps
intechnicalproceduresinatext,usinglanguagethatpertainstotime,sequence,andcause/effect.

IntegrationofKnowledgeandIdeas

7.Useinformationgainedfromillustrations(e.g.,maps,photographs)andthewordsinatextto
demonstrateunderstandingofthetext(e.g.,where,when,why,andhowkeyeventsoccur).

WritingStandards

1.Writeopinionpiecesontopicsortexts,supportingapointofviewwithreasons.a.Introducethe
topicortexttheyarewritingabout,stateanopinion,andcreateanorganizationalstructurethat
listsreasons.b.Providereasonsthatsupporttheopinion.c.Uselinkingwordsandphrases(e.g.,
because,therefore,since,forexample)toconnectopinionandreasons.
7.Conductshortresearchprojectsthatbuildknowledgeaboutatopic.